


Lullaby For Lost

by afteriwake



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV)
Genre: Angry Graham Miller, Attempted Murder, BAMF Xander Harris, Broken Engagement, Camp Pendleton, Creepy Stalker, Demons, Distrust, F/M, Graham Miller Backstory, Graham Survives, Gun Violence, Happy Ending, Hospitals, Injured Graham Miller, Kidnapped Original Female Character(s), Kidnapping, Kissing, Military, Military Backstory, Minor Willow Rosenberg, Non-Graphic Violence, POV Multiple, Part Demon Stalker, Past Relationship(s), Payphones, Phone Calls & Telephones, Protective Graham Miller, Protective Xander Harris, Reconciliation, Relationship History, Reunions, Reunited and It Feels So Good, Shooting, Soldier Xander Harris, Special Ops, Stalking, Surfing, Xander Has A Cousin, Xander Saves Graham's Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-17
Updated: 2018-12-17
Packaged: 2019-09-21 04:05:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 4,418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17036318
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afteriwake/pseuds/afteriwake
Summary: Xander and Graham have a surprising and previously unknown connection: Xander's cousin Danielle, a professional surfer. When a threat from the past comes back to haunt her, both men step in to save a woman they both hold dear.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> An answer to a challenge (#34) at YGTS?, an old Buffyverse challenge community. The places mentioned were actual places in Oceanside, CA when the fic was written in the early 2000s. I've done minor edits but basically, it's the same as when originally written over fifteen years ago.

Xander pulled into the beachfront apartment. Danielle was in trouble, so he was going to help. He glanced to the silent passenger next to him. "We're here." 

Graham was staring at the large waves on the other side of the asphalt. Occasionally another car drove along the Strand, but there was a clear view of the sunset and the huge waves barreling in the distance. The Oceanside pier was up north, hovering in the background, which meant they were southside. 

Graham had never wanted to come back here. 

"Triple overhead," he muttered. 

Xander stared at Graham. "Why does she want you here anyway? How do you know her?" 

Graham finally looked at Xander, for the first time in the four hour drive south. "She's out there." 

"Out where?" 

"Surfing." Graham pointed further into the driveway. "Her wax is out, and her surfboard's not here. She's using the five-nine, I bet. It's not big enough, but she'll make it work." 

Xander looked at Graham. "How do you know Dani?" he asked again, more insistently this time.

"Xander?" A female voice cut off any chance at reply Graham might have had. Both men turned to see a young woman with long black hair and eyes exactly like Xander's run across the blacktop street as fast as she could while carrying a surfboard slightly shorter than her. "Graham?" 

"Dani," Graham said, a small smile flitting across his face. "You changed." 

"You did too." She smiled. "You were right...five nine. Seven broke a week or so ago." She leaned her stick up against the wall and started to peel off her wetsuit, revealing a bikini-clad female body, soft curves, and tanned skin, with a blue rhinestone navel piercing. That was new to Graham, who had seen every inch of that body in the past. 

"Like it? Got it done at Sins on Skin..." She smiled at her cousin. "Don't tell Mom, Xander. She still thinks of me as her little baby." 

"Won't spill a word," Xander said, smiling. "Why'd you want us here?" 

She looked from Xander to Graham, her eyes lingering. "He's back. He left flowers. Black roses. And another doll." 

Xander looked at Graham, something clicking. "You...you were the boyfriend, when it happened last time. The one who...?" 

Graham nodded. "Yeah. I thought I'd got him. I mean, he appeared...and..." Graham looked at Dani. "Any chance it's not him?" 

"No, it's him. Same handwriting, same arrangement, same everything." She looked at them, her smile finally being revealed as the fake cover it had been when her frown came to the surface. "Look, I don't want to go inside right now. And I'm kind of hungry." 

"Colima's?" Graham suggested. 

"Sure."


	2. Chapter 2

The three of them walked the short distance up the Strand to Pier View, passing the coffeehouse, the strip club, the adult bookstore, and the record store. It was the clash of two different worlds that made Oceanside such an interesting place, in Dani's opinion. The blend of old and new, even more so now that the city built the Regal movie theater and still wanted to get rid of the old Amphitheater right on the beach. 

Graham didn't care. He'd left it behind when Uncle Sam called, going to Sunnydale. He never thought he'd be back anywhere near the base where he had trained in Special Ops or the town where he and Dani had lived together those years ago. 

But he was back because of a plaintive request from Dani. Headstrong Dani... 

The cook brought their orders: Dani's rolled tacos, Graham's fish burrito, and Xander's carne asada taco and carne asada burrito. Dani looked at the two men, then around the crowd gathered at the popular restaurant. "He left the roses, the note...the doll..." 

"Start from the beginning, Dani," Xander said. 

"Okay. A few years ago, this freaky guy started following me around at my meets. He'd always be waiting around, just...there. And he always had a flower for me, no matter how I finished. At first, I was flattered." 

She looked down at the shorts she'd pulled on before they started walking, finding a loose thread to play with. "Then I met Graham after he'd come up here to Camp Pendleton for training. The guy still showed up with flowers and even asked me out on a date. I told him no, I was seeing someone. I thought he'd taken it okay." 

She looked at her food now. "Graham came to the next meet. Lots of big names there...Slater, Machado, Knox...he'd gotten leave and went with me to Hawaii. The guy was there. Before, he'd only come to local meets. And then he showed up there. Anyway, I started to freak a bit because he was everywhere Graham and I was." 

"On the last day, the morning of the finals, I went outside to go take a morning surf. I saw a box there that said 'To Danielle Harris' in scrawled handwriting. I opened up the box to find dead roses, a dozen of them. There was also a Barbie with long dark hair and a swimsuit." She paused, taking a sip of her drink. "The eyes were cut out, the stomach was slashed, the breasts were cut off...there was a noose around her neck." 

She looked at Graham, who nodded. She started to eat while he spoke. "We went to the police in Hawaii, but there wasn't anything we could do. Dani stayed out of the competition that day; almost lost her deal with Quicksilver because of it until they found out why. They got her an alarm system for her apartment, and security at every meet." 

"They're good to me," Dani said softly. 

"Anyway, I did some digging, found out about the guy. His name is Scott Captra. He'd been arrested for various things before including stalking, but nobody pressed charges." 

"Things got better after that," Dani said. "Security was good; if there was anything going on, I didn't know. I thought he'd given up. Graham and I...we started to make plans." She looked at Xander only, avoiding Graham's eyes. 

"And then, one night, we came home, and he was there. He was in my apartment. He shot Graham in the leg, and..." She shuddered. "We managed to get the gun away from him and hold him until the police came. We pressed every charge against him that we could. And he was sent to jail." 

"Where we thought he'd be staying," Graham added. 

"And we both moved on with our lives," Dani said. "I'd almost forgotten about him until last week. That's when I found the same type of box, this time with black roses. and then there was another mutilated doll...and a note. It said 'I'm back.' That was all it said." 

The men looked at each other for a moment, Xander beginning to say something, when Dani screamed, "There he is! He's over there!" The two men whipped their heads around and saw nothing, just tourists coming out of the California Surf Museum. 

"Dani," Xander said gently, "maybe we should take you to home." 

Dani nodded, numbly standing up, leaving behind four and a half rolled tacos and an almost full drink.


	3. Chapter 3

Xander brought the cup of chamomile tea to Dani, who was sitting in her living room. Trophies were on shelves at one end of the room between pictures of family and friends. There was a computer on a long desk next to that wall, covered in dust and papers. There was also a magnificent view of the beach, where the sun was beginning to sink below the horizon. 

"Is your computer working?" Graham asked. 

Dani shook her head. "No. This virus hit it, destroyed the hard drive." She sighed, curling up into the Mexican blanket. Graham recognized it as the one he got when they went down to Tijuana together. "But there's another one in my room you can use." 

Graham nodded, leaving the room and heading into Dani's bedroom. Xander turned to his cousin. "What happened?" 

"I saw him. I mean, he was walking, and I saw him, and then he disappeared into the crowd again." Dani pulled the blanket around her tighter, trying to use it as a shield of some sort to keep the bad man away from her. "I mean, it's like he just melted away into...nothing." 

Xander sat next to her, putting his arm around his cousin. "Mom and Dad and Aunt Dahlia never really said what had happened the first time. I had no idea." 

Dani hugged Xander. "I would have told you. I mean, I should have. You're the only one who understands me and...this," she said, pulling out of the hug and indicating her surfing trophies. "I just want him out of it. Out of my life. I don't want to be afraid anymore." 

****

\---

Graham sent a quick e-mail to his commanding officer, who told him who to report to at Camp Pendleton. He had known something wasn't quite right about this entire thing the first time, and the feeling just got worse. Especially after what had been found out about Scott Captra while he was in jail. 

Scott had been a loner, with a tendency to fixate on things he could never have through normal means. That included belongings, cars...and people. Dani wasn't the first athlete he'd stalked. 

But whereas normal stalkers were human, Scott was not. Not completely, anyway. He was part shadow demon, which allowed him to blend into shadows easily, to get around without being seen. The Initiative found that out and had him registered. 

That was how he'd known Scott had escaped the special psych ward he'd been sent to. Since he was human, there was no chip implant. And when the call from Dani had come, which Graham had figured it would, he got permission to leave his post and investigate. 

It was also up to him to tell Dani the news about Scott's demon heritage. He couldn't keep it from her; she had every right to know. But would she believe him? 

He sighed, leaning his head on his arm by the keyboard. Graham knew she didn't believe in anything supernatural. Xander, on the other hand, was a Scooby. He helped Buffy, who Graham disliked for what she did to Riley or caused him to do to himself. He knew she was the Slayer, and all her friends not only believed in the supernatural but helped her fight it. 

He also knew that Dani would probably be more inclined to listen to Xander than to him. 

And that was the problem! They acted like nothing had happened, that Graham hadn't broken off their engagement to go join The Initiative. That their past was just a simple thing, not as complicated as it had really been. And, of course, Graham had lied to Dani until he was safely in Sunnydale. 

When he was there, away from her, he told her the truth. And that was the most cowardly thing he'd ever done. 

Maybe now he could make up for it in some small way by giving Dani back her life. 

Graham sat up again, picking up the phone to make a call, one he had never imagined making. He needed help, and only one group of people could give him the research he would need to either recapture Scott Captra permanently or kill him. 

"The Magic Box, this is Rupert speaking, how may I help you?"


	4. Chapter 4

Xander stood up when he was sure Dani was asleep. He took the freezing cold cup of tea into the kitchen, bumping into Graham. "She's asleep." 

"That's good." Graham yawned slightly. "Xander, I need to fill you in on some things." 

"Like what?" 

"Like the fact that what we're dealing with isn't completely human, and that this time he might try to take Dani away." Graham sat down at the kitchen table where a cup of steaming coffee and a pile of papers sat. "I called your friends in Sunnydale. No one can come down here, but Rupert said he'd try and send me some research." 

Xander nodded. "What are we dealing with?" 

"A shadow demon and human hybrid." Graham shuffled the papers, looking for something in particular, and upon finding it handed it to Xander. "The Initiative had him registered. We only found out about his demon lineage for about three months before he escaped. He's more dangerous than we thought." 

"And how do we get rid of him?" 

"I don't know. We may just have to kill him, or something like that." 

Xander got his own cup of coffee and sat down across from Graham. "She told me what you did. How you left to join the Initiative and you lied to her." 

"I thought she might have." 

"Did you have a good reason?" 

Graham thought for a moment. "At the time, I thought I did...but now I know I didn't." He shook his head. "I'll tell you more later. Right now--" 

A muffled scream came from the other room. Both men jumped up and ran out, looking around. Dani's blanket was crumpled on the ground, and the window was open. A man was trying to climb out the window with an unconscious Dani thrown over his shoulder in a fireman's carry. 

"Dani!" Graham yelled, and the man turned around. He had a .38 caliber pistol in his hand. Taking careful aim, he pulled the trigger. 

Graham sank to the ground. 

Xander looked from the man to Dani to Graham. Then he started to advance on the man. "Leave her alone." 

"Or what? You'll hurt me?" The man laughed, a sick sound like nails dragged on a chalkboard. "I'd love to see you try." He aimed the gun at Xander and fired again, but Xander ducked and the bullet missed. 

While Xander was down, the man got onto the windowsill and jumped in a fluid motion, melting into the shadows as he did. Xander sprang up and ran to the windowsill, helplessly watching as the man headed to a car and sped off. 

"Xander..." Graham said weakly. "He got me in the chest." 

Xander nodded, running into the kitchen. He picked up the phone, dialed 911 and waited. "There's been a shooting..."


	5. Chapter 5

Xander had good reason to dislike hospitals. After his years of helping Buffy, he'd seen many of his friends in them as patients, some more than once. There was Buffy's bout with the flu and the whole bloodsucking incident. There were Willow's coma and Anya's broken arm and Giles' numerous concussions. But all of them were received in some sort of battle or fight. 

Now, he was at Tri-City Hospital, waiting to see if the only other person who could help him get his cousin back would come out of surgery okay. He'd been shot in cold blood by the same man who'd shot him in the leg years earlier. 

Graham had to be pissed. 

The doctor came out. "Mr. Harris?" 

Xander's head popped up from the cold cup of coffee he'd been staring at in his hands. "Yeah?" 

"Mr. Miller's surgery went just fine. No major organs were punctured, though the bullet was less than an inch from tearing through his lung. He's asleep right now, but he'll be fine." The doctor smiled. "I'm sure you're glad to hear that." 

Xander nodded. "How soon till he wakes up?" 

"Probably a few hours. I suggest going home and telling his fiance that things are going to be fine. I'm sure your cousin would like to know." 

"I know she would," Xander said, standing up. "Thank you." 

"If you hadn't called and done some simple first aid, Mister Harris, he would have died. He should be thanking you." The doctor turned and left at the calling of his name while Xander headed towards a pay phone. 

He wasn't about to call his Aunt Dahlia to let her know her only child had been kidnapped, and he wasn't going to be able to return to Dani's apartment until the police were done. There was only one more place he could call. 

"Giles, he got her," he burst out before Giles could finish saying hello. "He shot Graham and he got her." 

"Calm down, Xander. Who has her?" 

"The half-human shadow demon thing," he said, lowering his voice a bit. "He came in and jumped out of the window with her and took off." 

"Do you have any idea of the type of car he was driving?" 

"A VW Bug or something. Not a new one, an old one. It was blue or black. I couldn't tell because it was in the shadows." He rested his head on the metal part of the pay phone. "He just disappeared into the shadows." 

"Shadow demons do that." Giles paused for a moment. "Is Graham all right?" 

"Yeah. Surgery went okay. He'll be awake soon." 

"Good. Now listen to me. His military group knows of the threat of the demon, and he had contacted them earlier this evening. When he wakes up, get the information and go see them. You still remember some of your military training?" 

"Some of it." 

"Then that is a plus. Inform them of Graham's injury if they do not already know. I'll try and get Buffy or Anya down to you by tomorrow, but it's not certain. Glorificus is starting to make her move." 

Xander thought for a moment. "Keep them there. You're going to need all the help you can get." 

The operator interrupted the call, saying he only had a minute more unless he inserted more money. 

"Xander?" Giles said quickly when the operator was done. 

"Yeah?" 

"Be careful." 

And then the connection was lost.


	6. Chapter 6

Dani first felt the dull aching pain in her head. She tried to reach up to see if there was a bump but found her hands tied behind her back. She then felt the rope around her ankles and the cold floor under her. 

And it was so dark... 

"You woke up." 

Dani froze. That voice...she knew it from somewhere. "Who are you?" 

"You mean you don't remember me? I thought the flowers of the doll might have brought it back." 

"You..." She stopped. "Scott?" 

"Amazing. You _do_ remember." She heard a rustling to her left. "You look so different." 

"I...I let my hair grow," she said, trying to swallow the lump rising in her throat. A cold hand touched her cheek and she flinched. 

"You did more than that." The hand stroked her cheek, and finally, Dani realized she was blindfolded. "You're tan. You've been living a life." The hand moved away from her check, traveling down to the nape of her neck. "I can't be in the sun that much anymore." 

"Wh...why?" 

"Because my demon half doesn't like it. It likes the cold, the shadows...it loves the dark." 

Demon? Was he really insane? "But I saw you!" 

"And wasn't I in the shadows? I saw you with that boy you had been engaged to, and someone new." He almost spat the word "boy." The hand moved from the nape of her neck and a single finger trailed down her collarbone and traced the V-neck of her shirt. "I finally got him, though. Right in the heart, or somewhere around there." 

"No..." she whispered. "No..." 

She felt a cheek touch her cheek, and stale breath whispered a single word. 

"Yes." 

****

\---

"I'm going to kill him!" Graham tried to sit up but clutched his chest in pain. 

"You aren't going to kill him," Xander said. 

"Want to bet?" Graham sank back into the hospital bed. 

Xander shook his head. "You can barely move around without hurting, Graham. You can't go after him. Giles said he'd try and send Buffy down here, but they can't afford to have her here, so we're all Dani's got." Xander shook his head. "No, I'm all she's got." 

"We're not all," Graham said. "Go on base, through the rear gate. They let civilians on base, especially since we used my car. It has the decals on it. Go to the commandant's office. He can get you in touch with my CO and the person I was supposed to work with on base." 

"Are you sure they'll listen to me?" 

Graham nodded towards the closet where his clothing was. "Take my wallet. My special ID is in there. If they haven't heard--" 

"Tell them, I know. Giles said the same thing." Xander walked over to the closet, fished out Graham's wallet and put it in the opposite back pocket. "Anything else I need to know?" 

"Only talk to the commandant. No one else knows about the Initiative or their experiments on that base except him." 

Xander nodded. "I'll be back." 

Graham sat up, wincing but forcing himself to do it anyway. "Xander, get her back. There are things I need to tell her." 

"I will."


	7. Chapter 7

Xander was surprised at how quickly the guards let him through the rear gate. He had thought there would be more of a hassle, but instead. they gave him a quick wave through. He was so surprised he almost didn't move forward. He was expecting hassles all over the place, but news spread. A Marine attached to Special Ops was hurt protecting a civilian. That was big news to spread. And getting to the place he was supposed to go to, he found even fewer problems, being rushed into the CO's office, outlining the situation and getting what he needed to be done done. 

He got lost on the huge base but arrived at the Naval Hospital just in time for the beginning of visiting hours a while later, confident that the problem of Dani's disappearance and rescue would be taken care of soon. He did have slightly more hassle being allowed to see Graham, who had been transferred to the military hospital from the civilian one, but that was only because they weren't related. A little sweet talking and he was in, seeing Graham attempt to sit up again.

"Everything work out?" Graham asked sleepily. 

"Worked out just fine. The Initiative knows, they're sending some people down here. Willow's coming too. We're going to work the magic angle and they'll be our back-up. We'll find Dani." 

"Good," he said, sinking back into the pillows. "Good..." 

Xander sat by the bed, watching Graham fall back asleep. He'd taken a bullet to try and save Dani. 

God, he must love her.

**\---**

Willow got in the car, trembling with a combination of fear and anxiety. Giles was loaning her his convertible. This was a momentous occasion. She started the car...or, at least, she tried to. 

Nothing happened. 

She tried again, and again, and again. 

Nothing. 

"Giles! We have a problem..."

**\---**

Scott watched Dani. She slept fitfully, twitching and moaning, her hair falling in her face unchecked. 

She was suffering. 

It was beautiful. 

He had her now, and that was that. No one would take her away from him. They'd be together. 

Forever. 

But, it was night time. Shadows abounded, and Scott decided to visit the cliffs in Carlsbad. It was the one beach with the most shadows. And he hated being disturbed while he was at the beach.


	8. Chapter 8

Xander didn't know where to start. He only knew what Dani had told him about Scott, and it wasn't much. She knew he said once he liked the beach, so he was combing the beaches, searching the shadows. 

He'd just about given up when he heard someone say that at the cliffs in Carlsbad, someone was attacking beachgoers at night, beachgoers who ventured into the shadows by the cliffs. 

Sounded like it might be the guy he was looking for... 

****

\---

Scott was about to hit the guy with the hat in front of him. The dolphins were jumping and this idiot was sitting right in front of him. He was in a killing mood. 

The man turned around. "Surprise," Xander said. He reached over to Scott, grabbing him by the scruff of the neck. There was a scuffle, but Scott was at a loss here for a surprise attack. He could attack someone blind, but when he was the attackee he was helpless. It took a very short fight for Scott to lose. Xander clipped handcuffs he'd gotten from the Midnight Adult Bookstore around Scott's wrists. "Take me to Dani," he said through clenched teeth. 

****

\---

Dani woke up slowly. There was a lot of light, and she didn't recognize the ceiling or what she could see of the walls. 

"Hey," she heard from her left. Looking, she saw Xander there, and behind him, she saw Graham trying hard to sit up in bed. She was in a hospital of some sort. But she was alive, and she was with people who cared about her, and for that, she considered herself lucky.

"Graham," she said, relief flooding her voice. She tried to climb out of bed but found her legs wouldn't hold her. "Help me, Xander." 

Xander helped her over to Graham's bed. "Oh, Graham, Scott said he shot you in the chest and you were dead and..." She started to sob. "Graham, I love you." 

"I love you too," he said quietly. "I didn't mean to make things such a mess." 

She climbed into his bed as best she could. Xander looked at both of them. 

"Scott's in a special prison for the criminally insane. He's in a cell filled with light to make sure he doesn't use shadows to escape. It's not foolproof, but it's something." He sat back down in his seat. 

"You mean he could get out?" 

"Maybe..." Xander began when a uniformed Marine came into the room. He carried a stack of papers in one hand and his cover under his arm. 

"Miller?" 

"Yes, sir," Graham said. 

"News. Scott Captra was found dead in his cell. Too much exposure to light. Your CO has said that you are on medical leave until further notice, and he'd prefer if you stay here in Oceanside near Tri-City and the Naval Hospital." The man nodded his head and left the papers with Xander. 

"Well, I guess the answer's no," Xander muttered. He looked over to Graham and Dani and saw them kissing softly. "Well, if you'll excuse me, I need to find out why no back-up showed up." He stood quietly and proceeded to leave the room, closing the door with a smile on his face.


End file.
